


Kids in the Dark

by Shoeless_Sam



Category: IT - Stephen King
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Everyone Is Alive, F/F, F/M, M/M, except pennywise
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-22
Updated: 2020-05-02
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:07:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23783623
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shoeless_Sam/pseuds/Shoeless_Sam
Summary: The six of them had fought Pennywise. They could deal with a new kid.---OR the one where pennywise had a child who has decided to get revenge.
Relationships: Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier
Comments: 22
Kudos: 26





	1. The Losers Club

**Author's Note:**

> this was gonna be a one shot but I got attached

Eddie woke up in a cold sweat. His hair was matted down on his head, his heart was beating so much it felt like it was going to run away, and his throat hurt. It was the first time this had happened since… since him and his friends defeated the evil, demonic clown. If it truly was dead.

Nope. No. No way. Eddie could  _ not  _ let his mind go there. If he did, he didn’t know if he would stop. IT was dead. Long dead. Done. Forgotten about. Locked in a metaphorical box and hidden deep in his subconscious. In fact, it was wrapped in chains and--

His alarm was going off.

Eddie let his head drop against his pillow before he reached over to turn the alarm off. It was hard to ignore the rancid feeling building up in his stomach. Something felt… off.

He grabbed his phone and called the number he knew by heart. The person he trusted more than anyone. The closest person to him. They understood each other in a way Eddie couldn’t explain.

After two rings, “Eddie! What do I owe this early morning call for?”

There was no one else in his life like her. Beverly Marsh was his rock.

Eddie played with the hem of his shirt. “Just… I had a nightmare. Again.”

“We get nightmares all the time Eddie… it’s like PTSD or something.”

“No, this is different,” Eddie corrected. He tried to formulate what he wanted to say, yet came up blank. “I don’t know how to describe it. It just…”

“Felt off?” Bev filled in.

“Yes! Exactly! Wait. Have you felt the same thing?” Just like that, the filling of dread in his stomach came back with a vengeance. Eddie took deep breaths in from his nose and out his mouth to calm back down.

“Well…” There was a long pause before Bev spoke again, “Yes. Kind of. I just woke up today and felt… scared. I haven’t felt that in a while.”

“I knew you would understand.”

“But I’m sure it’s just the final we’re preparing for in math. I wasn’t planning to kill anyone again-- if you count IT as a someone… but I could change that for Mr. Peirce. That guy is serious evil!”

Eddie listened to Bev rant about their math teacher as he got up and dressed. They would be okay. They had each other.

* * *

At 7:05 sharp, Eddie left his house. Keeping to his schedule helped him feel in control. It was one of the rare things he was able to control.

It would have taken him five minutes before he got to Bill’s house and they would have walked for another seven minutes before getting to Stan’s house. The three of them always walked together in the mornings they had school.

But he must have taken a wrong turn somewhere. Instead of standing in front of Bill’s house. With the bikes thrown out on the grass and the new swingset Bill’s dad had installed last summer. Instead, he was in front of a house he hadn’t been to in years. He wouldn’t even know where he was if he didn’t feel the dread creep back in again.

Neibolt.

Except it wasn’t falling apart now. It looked…  _ nice _ ? The windows were fixed, the lawn was clean and neat, there was even new paint on the outside.  _ What the fuck had happened?! _

With a shaky hand, Eddie took a picture before sending it to their group chat.

**Losers Club**

_ [ you sent an image ] _

**Bevvy :** what the actual fuck?!?!?!?!!?!

**Bill :** I dont have any words

**Stan >:O : ** Yet you’re able to text.

**Mike :** let’s not fight guys

**Bill :** exactly! we need to figure out why Neibolt is...normal

_ I hope it isn’t Pennywise doing some spring cleaning _

**Ben :** I’m sure it’s just cause people moved in and fixed it up

_ I hope. There’s no moving truck _

**Bevvy :** and we havent seen it for like threeeeee??? years 

**Mike :** yes. so I’m sure a new family moved in at some point in that time 

Eddie closed his phone. He was satisfied with that conclusion. The six of them had killed IT. The six of them could handle someone new moving in town.

Eddie looked at the house once more. It was quiet. He continued on his way to school.

  
  



	2. Fuck Your Doodles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my space bar stopped working, thank god for copy and paste

Eddie liked to doodle in his notebook. Things like flowers and stars. Especially during math. 

Some school board sadist had made math Eddie’s first period of the day. If that wasn’t a sin then Eddie didn’t know what was. The only redeemable thing about math was that it was the only period all the Losers had together.

In math the seats were set up in groups to help Mr. Evans' effort at being “creative” . Since there were six of them, they couldn’t all fit in one group . Ben, Mike, and Bill took one group while Eddie, Bev, and Stan took another one nearby. While Eddie’s group still had an open seat and they wouldn’t be getting any new students this late in the year, the other group had a girl named Audra.

Audra seemed nice enough, as far as Eddie knew. She really only talked to Bill and sometimes Mike. She had shoulder-length red hair which Eddie quickly learned was Bill’s type.

“Then Georgie took my money!” Bill ranted as he leaned over to Eddie. But even when ranting about Georgie, he had a smile on his face. Eddie smiled back. He loved hearing about Georgie.

Eddie didn’t know how Georgie had survived and he didn’t ask. He was happy and healthy. And in one piece. Eddie didn’t want to know more than that.

Bill was stopped from continuing his rant by the door to the classroom creaking open. It might have been because of the loud, ominous creak that came with it, but once again Eddie felt the unsettling feeling creep back.

Principal Burton walked in, followed by a new boy. Eddie’s stomach dropped when he and the new boy locked eyes. He was tall, wore glasses, and had dark hair but the brightest hawaiian shirt on. Eddie wasn’t sure if it was just the headache from the guy’s shirt or his intense glare, but Eddie did not trust this boy. There was just something that bugged the shit out of him.

Eddie looked around but no one else looked suspicious. All his friends had resumed talking.

Eddie planned to ignore the feeling until the boy sat down next to him. Unlike he expected, there wasn’t a welcome introduction. No name to go off of. Nothing.

Just the hairs standing up at the back of Eddie’s neck.

Eddie pulled out his phone to text the group chat.

_I_ _don’t_ _trust_ _the_ _new_ _boy_

**Bevvy** **:** just because he’s new doesn’t mean we shouldn’t trust him

**Ben** **:** You guys trusted me

_this is different._ _are_ _you_ _gonna_ _ask_ _the_ _new_ _kid_ _if_ _he'd like to goto the clubhouse afterschool?_

**Ben** **:** Well... no

_ exactly! _

**Bill** **:** maybe we should

**Bevvy** **:** we should at least give him a chance

Eddie hated to admit they were right. But he also wanted to protect his friends. He couldn’t back down.

Eddie thought it over for a second. As long as his friends thought he was giving the new guy a chance, he could do some snooping. His friends wouldn’t know the difference. If the new guy turned out to be evil, he would be one step ahead. And if the new guy was good, then his friends would never have to learn of Eddie’s plan.

_ fine _

_ infact, i’ll invite him to have lunch with us _

_ right now _

Eddie slipped his phone back in his pocket before turning to look at the new boy.

The boy had light freckles that-- he was doodling on his shoe. Eddie watched for a moment as he drew tiny red balloons on the side of his converse.

It had taken a full five months of exposure therapy for Eddie to not have a panic attack every time he saw a balloon. But now, for the first time in a while, the balloons made him one edge.

The boy looked up with a curious smile. “You like balloons?”

Eddie felt his breath catch in his voice. He shook his head in response as him and the new boy locked eyes again.

“Balloons are pretty cool though. You gotta admit.” They boy drew another one quickly. “They do something even humans can’t do… float.”

Eddie felt himself freeze up but he just laughed that feeling away. “Oh wow! Yeah… totally.”

The boy nodded with a smile.

“So, you’re new here?” Eddie just felt like he needed to ask.

“Pretty new yeah.”

“Well, I’m Eddie,” Eddie introduced himself. “Do you wanna sit with me and my friends?”

The new boy smiled really wide at Eddie’s introduction, which Eddie assumed was from the lunch invitation. “It would be my pleasure! My name is Richie.”

“Nice to meet you Richie.”

“Even nicer to meet you…” Richie went back to drawing on his shoes. “Would you like to float too, Eds?”

Eddie forced a laugh as he focused back on his work. It was a coincidence.

  
  



	3. Sadistic Balloon-Loving Asshat

The rest of the class seemed to go by uneventful. Eddie continued talking to his friends and Richie seemed to be in his own little world. Eddie would look over every once and a while to make sure Richie wasn’t planning to launch an attack on him.

Every time, the boy would be doodling on his shoes. After the twentieth time, Eddie decided to finally say something.

“How many pairs of shoes do you have?”

Richie looked up at him with an amused smile. He looked Eddie over before going back to drawing on his shoe.

“Hey, asshat?” Richie looked up with an even bigger grin. “I asked you a question.”

“I know.”

“Then answer???”

Richie thought it over before shrugging. “No thanks.”

_ Okay then,  _ Eddie thought. “Cause you’ve almost filled your shoe up and we’re not even done with first period. Do you have like millions of pairs?”

Richie looked him over. Eddie felt like the boy was judging Eddie to see if he deserved to have his question answered.

“... no. I only have the one.”

“Oh okay.”

Eddie both wanted to run and never see this boy again and also wanted to learn more about him.

  
  


... 

Richie never showed up to lunch. Which was just fine. Eddie didn’t mind. In fact, this was a positive. Now he could enjoy time with his friends and--

As if on cue, Richie came into the cafeteria.

“New kid!” Bev called over to him. Eddie resisted correcting her with his actual name. Richie started making his way over.

“I wonder where he’s from,” Mike commented. “Since we’ve never seen him before.”

“Maybe Hawaii,” Bill offered. Stan threw a french fry at him for that.

When Richie arrived, he took a seat next to Eddie and smiled over at the boy.

“There are a ton of other places to sit asshat.”

“But this one has the best view!” Eddie heard some  _ ooh _ ’s and his phone buzzing as Richie said that. Eddie ignored them all, feeling the fire rise up in his chest.

“YOU DON’T EVEN KNOW ME YOU SADISTIC BALLOON-LOVING ASSHAT!”

Richie had the audacity to laugh at him. He even thought he might have heard Bev snickering.

“NO! COME WITH ME!!”

Eddie got up from the table and started walking towards the exit not even making sure Richie was actually following.

Eddie started shaking by the time they got out into the hall.

“Woah, Eds, you okay?” Eddie whipped around at that.

“No! I’m not okay. You are just… EVIL! You’re evil and I know it.”

“No I--” Eddie rolled his eyes. “Fine.” Richie grabbed his shirt and pushed him up into the wall.

  
  



	4. What the fuck?!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is a short lil chapter!
> 
> let me know if you like shorter, more regular chapters or longer chapters that take more time!

“So what if I’m evil?” Eddie tried to squirm away. “I was trying to be nice to you.”

“You! I knew there was something up with you!” Eddie locked eyes and for the first time realized that Richie’s eyes were glowing red. Eddie hadn’t paid much attention to the other boy’s eyes but he knew his irises did not glow red.

“Oh wow! So smart. Aren’t you, Eds?!”

“Your eyes are red!”

“Oh do you not like that color?” Eddie tried to get away again, and Richie held him in place tighter.

“Not particularly,” Eddie gritted out.

“What about a different color…” Richie’s eyes turned a brilliant shade of purple. Eddie would be in awe if he wasn’t scared for his life.

Eddie shook his head and they went back to red. “Why the balloons?”

“They float.”

“So I’ve heard… do you, like, work for him or something?”

“Him?” Richie looked almost amused.

“IT.”

Richie laughed as he stepped back. Eddie could finally breathe again.

“You do, don’t you?

“That a secret!” Richie winked before walking back into the cafeteria.

_ What the fuck?! _


End file.
